1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus which utilizes services provided by a plurality of service providing devices that exist on a network, a method of controlling this apparatus, a program for implementing the control method and a storage medium storing the program.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a technique available in the art, the result of a search of service items is presented to a user in the form of a list, the user is allowed to select from the list a desired service item and an information device that provides the service, and the service capable of being provided by the selected information device is utilized. In order to allow the user to select the desired service item from among multiple service items, it is necessary to present a user which information device provides what function, i.e., service. In order to solve this problem, a technique utilizing icons indicating functions has been disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-110375. This technique is such that when a list of information devices that provide services is displayed, the functions possessed by the information devices are displayed as icons and rearranged, whereby a list of information devices function by function is supplied to the user.
Further, the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-107081, for example, discloses a technique for improving user operability, namely a technique in which a management server apparatus or the like in a network is queried with regard to available services, and a selecting operation by the user is inhibited in relation to non-available services.
However, in a case where it is desired to find another information device that is capable of providing a function equal to a function capable of being provided by a selected information device, the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-110375 is disadvantageous in that the user is required to compare the function-indicating icons with one another and the user him/herself is required to make the decision. Consequently, in a case where it is desired to select and utilize a plurality of services having equal functions, the operation for selecting the information device is a burden borne by the user.
Further, in a case where a plurality of services of the same type are utilized simultaneously, all of the service items do not necessarily provide the same functions. For example, in a case where a plurality of print services are utilized to perform an output, all of the print services do not necessarily support a double-sided printing function. In view of these circumstances, merely using the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-107081 will not make it possible to provide a user with user-friendly operability in the setting of functions in cases where services of the same type are utilized simultaneously.